Rabbits, Potato Bugs and Heat, Oh My!

We have been out in the gardens for the last two weeks fighting weather (intense heat and humidity), Potato Bugs (the Irish Lumpers are leafless)and rabbits. There is a rabbit explosion this year. Not to mention the 6 cute baby grounhogs that are roaming the Yankee Garden, the cutworms wrecking havoc on the broccoli and the mosquitos dining on the gardeners and volunteers. Just another year in the gardens
Make sure you listen to the Potato Bug song in the music player lower right side of page. It's a hoot!

Busy in the Gardens

The Heritage Gardeners have been very busy this past month. We have been planting, replanting (thanks to hungry mice eating the squash seeds) and transplanting in the greenhouse. We have been rototilling the gardens, planting the potatoes and peas and other cool weather crops. We are planting the rest of the gardens now that the frost date is past. We scramble in between rains to get plants in the ground. The mosquitos have arrived and the weeds are popping up all over.

We are also organizing Friends Of The Gardens a new group of volunteers that will work on fundraising and community outreach. We are working to develop new programs for youth and adults.

The Heritage Gardens are open for group tours starting in mid-June. Heritage Garden staff in period clothing take your group to the 5 gardens and 2 cabins while teaching about the people and plants they used in the mid 1800's in the Boone County area. If you have a group of garden friends who would like to tour the gardens and cabins please call the Boone County Conservation District offices at 815-547-7935. Cost per person is $5.00.

Tours are given to garden clubs, ethnic clubs, schools or camps, families, friends, anyone with a group of 8 or more people!
We hope to see you in the gardens!

Last Frost Dates for Belvidere and Rockford

I have had many new gardeners ask "When is the last frost date for the Belvidere/Rockford area?" I usually plant with the date of May 15 as being safe. Belvidere and Rockford are in an area that gets different temps than Chicago. I consider us a zone 4 although many sites and charts list us as zone 5. I plant as if we are zone 4. After doing a lot of research on the internet, going to official government sites, the Farmers Almanac and extension sites, I will say that most of them had April 28th as the last frost date. The Farmers Almanac had at a 50% probability date; around May 15. I am planning on putting some lettuce seeds in the ground right around April 30 just to see what happens. Otherwise I'll wait till May 15th. Better safe than sorry.

A Time To Sow.

This week Pat and I have been transplanting and sowing. We transplanted leek seedlings, broccoli and brussel sprouts. We have been planting seeds, lots of them, for vegetables, herbs and flowers. There were some teeny tiny seeds you almost have to hold your breath while planting, for fear they will blow away. Especially the German Chamomile.
I am always amazed that you sow these small objects and in a few months you have plants, in a few more months, food.
As I left the green house today I felt a great sense of accomplishment when I looked down the rows of flats. Rows of hope. Rows of wonder.

Recycling for the garden

I have always been one to reuse items in the garden. At our old house I had taken old pitchforks and stuck them in the garden. I attached bird houses on the top of the handle. That made them movable when I was weeding (as long as no one was living in them of course. I had an old iron bed that was a "bed of lettuce". I built a raised bed, attached the frame and plated my lettuce. I made a quilt of the different colored lettuces. When the lettuce was done I planted annuals then in the fall I transplanted the annuals for fall color to other parts of the garden and replanted lettuce in the bed. I have made old workboots into planters, taken an old iron heat grate and used the grate part of it to cover my cistern hole and the frame part was hung as wall art.
When we moved into our new home, a 50's ranch, there was a big brick planter that was attached to the front of the house.
I tried planting flowers in it the first year but the soil was dead and nothing would grow so I needed to come up with another solution. Since I love water in the garden I decided to make it into a goldfish pond. I dug out the soil to the depth I wanted and tamped the remaining soil to harden it.
I then added a heavy pond liner.
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I used a heavy duty contruction adhesive that bonded to cement. I added wood to hold it in place till the adhesive dried.

When it was dry my husband bordered the top of the liner with cedar, I added water and a filter and let it sit for a week before I added my fish. I added plants and was happy with it but it still needed more.

I wanted a fountain. I took an old fluorescent light fixture we had removed from our kitchen, removed the guts and painted the frame copper.

I added tiles I got from the Habitat for Humanity Reuse store and attched them to a cement board backing. I drilled a hole in the top tile and added a box for the water to fill up and I had a fountain. We hung it on the wall above the pond and it pathetically poured into the pond. I had wanted a wall of water.

So I decided to add fountains in the pond. What to use? I have always like stone and spheres and symmetry so I chose bowling balls! I went to the local resale shop and bought three bowling balls for 1.99 each. I had my husband bring home a masonry drill from work and he drilled the holes for me.
You can also go to a bowling alley that has a pro shop and have them drill the holes for you. I sprayed on a primer. Then a spray on product that looks like stone, then a top coat of sealer.

I used pvc pipe, recycled from a work site dumpster, to hold them up to the right hieght in the water.


And this is the finished project. I love it! It will be even better when it warms up enough for me to add my fish and plants!

A Winter Gardening Fix

As a gardener living in Northern Illinois, winter can seem like forever. Perusing garden catalogs fills the void in January, making garden plans helps in February, but by March I am just itching for the smell of soil and plants. So the only solution is to head out to the Chicago Garden Show.
Pat and I went on a cold and rainy day into Chicago, which is a 2 hour drive (in Chicago traffic) from Belvidere. As soon as we walked in the smell of flowers hit us. It was wonderful. We were instantly drawn to the displays and oohed and aahed over all the plants. My particular obsession is with water gardens. Anything with water draws me in. Below are just a few of the many pictures I took of the water features.

This was a small waterfall that went into a rock depression instead of a pond.

This picture shows a downspout filter that saves water to be used in water features. A pump and hose can be attached sends the water to a pond, fountain, stream.

This fountain is made up of rock formations that have been drilled and put together to form a grouping. Pricey for the poorer gardener!

This is a fantastic alternative to the above fountain. Concrete forms were used to make the 3 pillars in this version. I love this idea!

Mood lighting, water and fog, what more could you add?

This guy is just plain funny!

Simple and calming.

This was a Mexican fountain. The water came out of the structure and poured out over the stone slab.

This is a picture of my house, an old 50's ranch. See the brick planter attached to the front of the house? Next post I will show you how I turned it into a fish pond and show you my recycled fountains.
I know this has nothing to do with Heirloom plants but I can't resist sharing!

It's Spring! Time to Start the Ground Cherries

It's official. The first day of Spring. To celebrate I am going to start the ground cherries.
Ground Cherries are in the tomato family. The ones we grow in the BCCD Cultural Heritage Gardens have a pineapple/strawberry taste. They are in a paperlike husk and when ripe the husk falls off the plant. That's when you pick them off the ground. Try not to eat them as you are collecting so you have enough for a pie or preserves.
The seeds you see here are from the BCCD Cultural Heritage Gardens.
Last Fall Pat and I gathered some ground cherries. When they started to rot we processed the seeds by placing them in water. We let the water get moldy, slimy smelly, then strained and rinsed them. We then dried them and packaged them for our sale. Pat was the patient one who cut out the squares of waxed paper, placed the seeds in the middle, then folded it into nice packets.
I am starting my seeds by presoaking them. It is a good way to give them a head start. Seeds need to soak up water before they can sprout, so by presoaking I can save a few days in the sprouting process.
I wash old plastic containers from yogurt, margarine, whatever I have, in the dishwasher to sterlize and then drill 1/4" holes in the bottom for drainage. I add my soil mix which is not potting soil but seed starting mix which you can buy in bags at the local hardware store. I even out the soil, add my seeds then put a light layer of soil on top of the seeds. I set the container in a pan of water till the soil turns dark. That means the soil has absorbed the water and is wet. I then put the container in a plastic bag, seal it up and put it in a warm spot. On top of a refrigerator works great. Keep an eye on them. As soon as they sprout you need to move them to full sunlight or a grow light. Remove the pot from the bag, place in a tray (I use sterilized old Styrofoam or plastic meat trays)and fill with a small puddle of water to keep the pots moist.
That's how I start my tomato and pepper plants too. I use my ground cherries to make a great custard pie. I got the recipe from an old 1800's cookbook I have.

Ground Cherry Pie
2 unbaked pie crusts
3 eggs, beaten
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg white
2 1/2 cups scalded milk
2 cups ground cherries

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Mix together eggs, sugar, salt, and vanilla. Stir well. Add the milk
3. Line pie pans with pastry, and brush inside bottom and sides of shell with egg white. Divide custard mixture in half and pour into piecrusts. Put 1 cup of ground cherries on top of each pie.
4. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool on rack.
Enjoy!